


All Things Nerdy and Timey Wimey

by Nicxan



Category: Doctor Who, The Runaway Guys
Genre: Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-29
Updated: 2014-06-02
Packaged: 2018-01-27 00:22:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1708058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nicxan/pseuds/Nicxan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being invited to a Let's Players only convention was like a dream come true; it was a place meant for the LPers, their fans, and the games. However, from the moment he arrives, Jon feels that something is amiss in the ritzy host hotel. The workers claim they're protecting the public, but what could be putting them in danger? [[ Incomplete; Will Not Be Finished ]]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Restless

Jon attempted to ignore the fact that he was nearly an hour late to meet up with his friends.   
  
He attempted to ignore that his ride broke down, and that it dropped him off way too far away from the destination. Three miles, to be exact. The real salt in the wounds were all the extensive plans he made that backfired on him. He even triple-checked the coordinates. _Fantastic start to the weekend._  
  
The buildings of the bustling city were imposing enough, and it didn’t help that he was completely lost. Jon skidded to a halt in front of the intersection. His blue eyes darted left, then right, then straight ahead. He let out a resigned sigh as he hefted the navy bag onto his shoulder. He could only imagine the remarks Emile would make at his situation, especially with the outfit he had thrown on.  
  
The oddest thing about Georgia was the weather. It was April, and yet it was about thirty-two degrees. Fahrenheit. From the way Chuggaa talked, it seemed like the state was in a perpetual summer no matter the season. Nevertheless, it was suitable weather to throw on a blazer and dress slacks.   
  
Just the thought of a warmer place reminded him of how cold the outside world was, and his teeth chattered. The faster he got to this “Let’s Players” convention, the better. A free room was only good if he actually got to it.  
  
... Wait. What did his directions say again? He rummaged through his bag and pulled out the folded papers.   
  
It said to the right of Peachtree Street, but that wasn’t extensively helpful. There were more Peachtrees than he could count and it infuriated him. Jon finally noticed the street sign right above his head.   
  
Peachtree Avenue.  
  
“Fuck!”   
  
He ignored the odd stares as he bolted back to the previous street. _Fuck Atlanta and these damn street names!_ Jon skid to a halt at the corner, and swore under his breath. His sneakers kicked a few pebbles aside; it felt like the most natural way to express his growing frustration.   
  
A crude convention sign was taped onto one of the street lamps, and scribbled arrows pointed the way to the destination hotel. Why he couldn’t have found this earlier, he wasn’t sure. That only added to his anger. Jon clenched his jaw and calmly walked across the road with the other pedestrians.   
  
His feet carried him from one sign to the next, and Jon let his mind wander. A Let’s Players convention was unheard of; apparently, it booked a newly-constructed hotel and managed to grab most, if not all, of the “well known” players on Youtube and Something Awful. He had to admit, it was pretty impressive; and he was more than glad to host a Thrown Controllers panel with Emile and Tim. Hopefully it would go just as smoothly as the last one.   
  
Eventually, his walk slowed to a stop, and Jon stared ahead at the hotel in the distance. He felt his jaw nearly drop as he entered the property.   
  
Trees were planted in an organized fashion, almost making an arch over the concrete. Small bushes and flowers decorated the sides of the walkway, and a fountain in the center solidified the ritzy atmosphere. Jon kept his pace slow to simply -- properly -- enjoy the scenery. A few people wandered about outside, but they mostly seemed preoccupied with their own arrangements.  
  
The hotel itself must have at least fifty floors -- that was from one glance at it. The exterior had a grand color scheme; the off-white was perfectly accented by golden and maroon trims, and small pillars held up the small roof above the mahogany doors. Whoever put the money into this hotel clearly oversaw the whole process, and whoever chose this place for the convention _really_ knew how to do things in style. In fact, it almost seemed too fancy.  
  
Jon finally gave a low whistle. “Damn.” It took him a few minutes to will himself to go inside instead of marveling at the flashy building. While this impressed him, he needed to get a few things sorted out. He adjusted his glasses, took a deep breath, and opened the door.   
  
The massive crowd inside told him he definitely came to the right place. People of all shapes and sizes bustled about within the hotel lobby, and they shifted around him. Jon ducked out of the way, but was soon frozen, once again, by the incredible decorations.   
  
The entrance did nothing compared to the format of the hotel. Convention hotels were already massive, but this outsized them with no question. The rugs matched the outside maroon perfectly, and golden zig-zags on the pattern gave it a stylish flair. Jon only stared for a couple of moments before he got dizzy; he promptly re-directed his attention elsewhere. The elevators were arranged in a circular pattern near the back, and Jon could count at least ten in that one spot. There were some more placed in the corners, and those weren’t crowded by con-goers. _That’ll be useful._  
  
Spiral staircases went up to the top, rounded in yet more mahogany and maroon borders on the wood itself. Jon squinted, and duly noted that they went all the way up to the twentieth floor. They were all the way in the back, which made them a bit hard to get to, but it’d be a decent last resort if all the elevators were taken.   
  
The last thing Jon noticed were the life-sized figurines of various video game characters. On one glance, he saw Megaman, Mario, and even Samus off to the far right. There were a couple more he couldn’t quite catch right away. Maybe if he looked closer ...  
  
“JON!”  
  
Jon nearly jumped out of his skin. Before he could properly recover, he felt a harsh clap on the shoulder. He winced, but couldn’t help but laugh from sheer shock. “Jesus, Emile, don’t do that!” As usual, Emile was all smiles. The con badge hung from his neck; it was obvious that he had been there for a while. Jon let out a quiet ‘oomph’ when his friend bear-hugged him, and he offered a pat on the shoulder in return. It was all he could do with the wind knocked out of him. “I missed you, seriously.”  
  
“Me too! Where’ve you been!?”  
  
He hesitated for a moment, then gave a nonchalant shrug. “Had some flight issues.” The skeptical look on Emile’s face made him snicker. “Hey, it happens. Don’t look at me like that.”  
  
“Uh, but the airport is less than ten minutes away.” A moment of silence passed between them. Jon cleared his throat.  
  
“I got lost.”  
  
Emile simply raised an eyebrow, but then just shrugged his shoulders. “Okay, then. We really should get the hotel key for you, though.”  
  
“Sounds like a plan,” Jon replied. He shifted the suddenly heavier bag and pulled it off of his shoulder. “Walking for an hour with this thing on has been a pain in the ass.”   
  
“Check in’s this way!” Emile gestured for Jon to follow him, and he did so. Jon took a few more glances around the hotel lobby, and got a clearer picture of some of the figurines; some of the people there were taking pictures with them, so his view quickly faded.  
  
“... procedures,” he heard Emile say. Jon forced himself to pay attention. “They’re just trying to get everyone taken care of as fast as they can, but the process is so weird here. Jake’s been stuck at the check-in for, like, thirty minutes.”   
  
His eyes grew wide. “That sucks. Why the hell has he been there so long?” He maneuvered around the crowd and joined Emile in the ever-growing mass. Jon began to fish through for his ID, and Emile continued talking. No surprise.  
  
“Man, don’t bother -- I’m the one that booked the hotel room. Stay here and I’ll deal with this, okay?” Emile almost shooed Jon out of line, and was gone before he could protest. Jon looked after Emile for a brief moment; he chatted with one of the receptionists, showed his ID ... the works. Maybe it was because he already got his badge and a key and such, but it didn’t seem any different than before. It wasn’t unlike Emile to exaggerate a bit. Two more minutes passed, and he caught a familiar someone out of the corner of his eye.

Looks like someone finally got their room key.  
  
“Hey, Jake. Superjeenius!” Jake paused; Jon could see the gears turn in his head before he glanced to his side. His eyes lit up, and he bounded over to Jon. “How’re you holding up? Looks like you were there for a while.”  
  
Jake let out an irritated sigh and ran his hand through his hair. “Yeah, no kidding. It was a total nightmare. Christ ...” The same hand pinched the bridge of his nose, but he finally let it go and stood up straight. “Procedure my ass. No hotel I’ve ever been to made me verify my ID that much. They quizzed me on it, like ... what, five times? And it was with different workers, too.”  
  
“That’s ridiculous.” Jon kept his tone as sympathetic as possible. He peered over the crowd to Emile, who was ... oh, lord, there were three people over there. Were they quizzing him again? _Jesus._  
  
“You saw the Metroid demo, right?” Jake gestured to the second floor, and Jon could now clearly see the line for the Fusion sequel. He raised both eyebrows. “I checked it out while waiting for Reese. It’s pretty legit.”  
  
“Looks like it. I’ll have to check it out later. He should be wrapping up hotel stuff, so I’ll need to ...” As if on cue, Emile bounced over. He shoved the new card key into Jon’s hands, then gave Jake a friendly wave.  
  
“Hope the rest of the convention is less of a pain, Jake.”  
  
“Yeah, no kidding,” Emile added. He winced in sympathy. “I think you were there the most out of everyone so far.”  
  
“Yeah, well ...” Jake sighed heavily. “I actually forgot some stuff, so I have to go to the stores nearby and pick things up. This is what I get for leaving some supplies at home, I guess!” He shrugged, then turned to leave. He waved idly, and then disappeared into the crowd. Jon and Emile looked on until he was gone.   
  
“Ready to go?”  
  
Jon’s feet nearly buckled under him, and his bag seemed even heavier than before. Jon groaned quietly and nodded in response. He was so very, very done with walking. Right now, he just wanted rest. Maybe a drink; his throat was drier than he thought.  
  
“I’ll take that as a yes, then. Follow me!” Emile gestured to the stairs, and bolted past the sea of people. Jon wordlessly followed. Each step felt like it took more and more work; the fact that they only went up three flights of stairs just made this worse. Had he really worn himself out that much?  
  
“Room 201! Pretty close to the lobby, isn’t it?”  
  
“How? Your luck?” Emile froze just as they reached the room door. The sudden quiet made Jon tense. Was there bad news? Was it something that the hotel did wrong? “... You’re scaring me, buddy. What was it?”  
  
“No, they were actually really insistent that I take it,” Emile said slowly. “Like, I said ‘No, no, we can take another room.’” He reached towards the door and swiped the card key. “They really wanted us to have this one. So ... I just took it.”  
  
His feet weren’t complaining, at least.   
  
“Anyway, you can put your stuff in the corner.” Emile grinned broadly and opened the door. Jon strode right past him without a word, and simply threw his bag on the first bed. “H-Hey!”  
  
“Thanks for being such a great host, Emile!” he remarked. Jon flopped onto the bed; a sick grin spread on his face. “Really appreciate it.”  
  
“I called that one!” Emile whined. He grumbled and simply sat on the edge of the other double bed.   
  
The room had the bare basics; the view of the city was fancy enough, but it was clear that they aimed for comfort in the rooms themselves. Jon let himself sink into the comforter, and simply buried his head into the pillows.   
  
“You can sleep on the floor. You’re tough. YOU haven’t been walking for an hour.” Emile burst out laughing, then rose to his feet. Jon looked on for a moment, unsure of why exactly he stood up, then he remembered he still had to get his badge. He let out a low groan. “I don’t want to get my badge right now. I really don’t.”

“Oh, come on. YOU’RE the tough one. Besides, Tim’ll be waiting with food when we get back.”  
  
Jon pulled himself away from his bed, and exited the room with his friend.  
  


* * *

  
Much to Jon’s delight, the line to grab his con badge was incredibly short. Pre-registering paid off, and this opinion was reinforced when he re-entered his temporary lodging. 

Unfortunately, rest never came easy for him. Despite the mattress made with the down of heavenly geese (at least, he assumed as such), he just didn’t feel like he could fall asleep. Jon shook his head and reached over the side of his bed to rummage through the bag. A good book normally helped whittle away the hours. Odd sleep schedules were something he learned to live with a very, very long time ago.  
  
Then again, to be frank, he wasn’t sure he was going to get any sleep if Emile kept snoring like that. He heard a dull ‘thud,’ and snickered. He couldn’t believe that the man actually did sleep on the floor.   
  
Jon finally fished out his copy of _I’m America (And So Can You!)_ and settled in for a long night.  
  
After what felt like an eternity, he heard a soft ‘thump’ from outside the room. Jon paid it no mind until it happened again. He blinked twice and looked at the door, then set down his book. One glance at the clock told him that it was way, way too early for anyone to be up. The sun wouldn’t be rising for another three hours.   
  
Jon cautiously undid the privacy locks on the exit and creaked the door open silently.  
  
Whatever had made the noise was definitely closer. Jon’s knuckles turned white as he all but slammed the door. All he heard at first was someone ... running. Why was someone running?  
  
“Stay away from me!” A familiar voice cried.   
  
The footsteps that followed were perfectly in time, rhythmic ... and too heavy to be normal shoes -- or boots. Jon felt his body freeze in fear as they passed by his room. He didn’t even dare breathe until everything went quiet.  
  
 _‘I should go after them. I should go help.’_ He couldn’t make his feet move one inch.   
  
As the sun came into view, Jon forced himself to move back to his bed. He had to at least pretend he got some sleep. Nevertheless, his hearts hammered in his chest as he closed his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there! This is a gift for a Let's Player that I'm pretty fond of. If you're wanting to find the Doctor, I'm sorry, you're gonna want to find another fic. I'll be adding little notes about the previous version of the story and things I've messed up/fixed for those who remember. Enjoy!!


	2. Nerves

There was no possible way it could be 10 AM already. Yet, by the frantic knocks and the pounding steps, Jon had to assume that Emile and Tim were up already. Jon shifted and covered his face with the pillow, and made a steadfast refusal to get out of bed.  
  
His tired eyes looked towards the stand in between the two beds, and he grumbled as he sat up. He was up at 9:10 AM, according to the hotel clock. He wasn’t sure why, since activities didn’t start until eleven, but sleep was out of the question at this point. Maybe they could take advantage of that free breakfast thing the hotel offered.   
  
He’d be sure to leave Emile out of the deal today since he was the one that woke him in the first place.  
  
“Dealer’s room is opening early today, gonna go ahead and check it out.”  
  
“... Emile,” Jon mumbled, “It’s only nine.” Emile stared past Jon, looked at his watch, and then the clock. He slammed his palm onto his forehead.  
  
“My watch says twelve!”  
  
Jon couldn’t help but laugh, and was joined by Tim after a couple of seconds. Emile grumbled under his breath and stormed into the bathroom. “I told you to change it, man!”  
  
“Shut up, Tim!” This only turned the laughter into a roar. Emile slammed the bathroom door in frustration. “God, I can’t believe both of you!”  
  
“You got five minutes to sulk until breakfast, Emile. Chop chop!” Jon hopped off of the bed and started to get dressed. He couldn’t wipe the smirk off of his face. Clearly, this was going to be an awesome day.  
  
After Emile managed to drag himself out of the bathroom, they grabbed their keys and headed down to the lobby.

The moment the Guys left the safety of their room, security guards began to eye them. Jon’s body tensed as he looked around; there were people stationed on every floor, near every corner. Their presence was especially noticeable on the lower floors. Their harsh gaze monitored them as they walked to the restaurant. Emile ducked quickly and moved as fast as he could to avoid them. Even though Jon stayed behind him, he could see just how nervous he was.  
  
“You think he’s okay, dude?” Tim asked. Jon shrugged his shoulders. “Once we finish breakfast, I’m going to go ask what’s going on. I mean, this isn’t right, man.”   
  
All he could do was agree silently and follow Tim inside. Worry gnawed at his stomach for his dear friend, but he didn’t dare say anything. The man looked like he’d be startled by a leaf. Instead, Jon scanned the crowd at the restaurant as Emile reserved their table. None of them looked at ease in the least. He caught frequent glances to the guards at the doors, and saw them drop their gazes when the guards glared at them in return.   
  
As they walked to their table, the tension grew thicker; it put a physical weight on the trio. They sat down quietly and examined the menus.   
  
None of the options looked appetizing, price or food wise. Jon’s stomach churned in protest, and he simply pushed away the list. “Suddenly, I’m really not hungry anymore,” he explained hastily. “Guess being watched like a criminal doesn’t improve your appetite.” He ignored the glare from the guard at the front.  
  
“We should’ve just gone out to eat,” Tim grumbled. He set down the menu. The dejected look on his face was quite contagious, and even Emile’s bright smile was gone. “I mean, maybe that’d be better?”  
  
“Yeah, let’s go.” Jon felt that his agreement came too quickly, but he’d do anything to get away from the glare of security. He rose from his seat, but couldn’t take a step before someone interjected.   
  
“No dice,” the stranger said. Jon looked over, now bewildered. For someone dressed as a magical girl, she sounded oddly somber. “We’re on lockdown. No one can get in or out.”  
  
“You have to be shitting me.” She shrugged sadly and went back to her meager meal. “Why?”   
  
“I dunno. Something about a criminal getting in or something. I wasn’t paying attention.” Jon gestured for Emile and Tim to follow him, and he stormed to the lobby level of the hotel. His eyes burned with fury, and his fists were clenched tightly. _They have no damn right to do this without an announcement!_  
  
“Hey, what’s going on?” Jon didn’t register the cries of protests from the two behind him, and simply leered at the guard in front of him. The armor was far from imposing; it clearly only had the bare basics. The most severe thing they had was the pistol, and that was right next to the taser. Was this some kind of joke? “Is this place seriously on lockdown?”  
  
“Yes.” The guard’s nonchalant tone made Jon want to smack the asshole. He instead took a deep, silent breath to keep his cool. This didn’t go unnoticed, and the guard tightened the grip on his baton. “Sir, there’s no point. We’ve got a criminal in here, and we’re not leaving until we get them.”  
  
“Oh, and who may that be? Come on, tell us! Maybe we can arm ourselves against a _dangerous fucking outlaw_!” Jon’s voice consistently raised in pitch, but the guard wasn’t budging. He had the same bland expression as before; this caused Jon to shrink back in shame.  
  
“We’re not at liberty to discuss that, sir. Move along.” The unspoken warning in his tone was more than enough for him. Jon scowled and walked away. He knew the soles of his sneakers dug into the carpet more than they should, and he was going to get one hell of a shock later, but he didn’t really care. All he could see was red.   
  
“Jon, are you all right?” Emile’s words were distant in Jon’s mind. They faded into one ear, and right out of the other. “Look, let’s just get everyone and hang out for a while. I mean, Reese and Josh are down for it. I texted them.” He began to stutter, and eventually went quiet at Jon’s lack of a response.   
  
“... Jon?” Tim asked.  
  
“Yeah?”   
  
“... So we’ll go hang out, then? It’s gonna be better than standing around and bein’ angry. Let’s try and make the most of this.” Jon nodded weakly at Tim’s words, and let himself be led away. He noticed Emile bring out his phone and send another text, but he didn’t think to ask why. All he wanted to do was get away from security for a while.

* * *

There were two coffee mugs on the table, along with half-eaten snacks from the bakery.   
  
Reese and Josh waited for far too long. They almost looked relieved when the Guys pulled up chairs and sat down. They exchanged brief pleasantries, gave each other a couple of hugs ... it made things seem just a bit more normal. The introductions were cut short rather quickly.  
  
“So, you heard from Jake at all?” Reese asked. She sat back in her chair, and folded her arms. Emile shook his head. She rolled her eyes. “Figures.”  
  
“Yeah, I think he’s in ... well, I dunno where he could be. In line for a panel, maybe.” Emile rose to his feet. “Any of you want anything? Coffee?” After the idle dismissals, he nodded and walked off to stand in line.  
  
“Probably can’t hear his phone,” Tim offered. “I mean, I’ve missed texts from you guys during cons.” Josh outright laughed, and turned to Jon.  
  
“Oh, man. Dude. Remember that one time I was telling you, ‘Hey, they’re breaking wood and shit in here, it’s awesome, get over here,’ and you didn’t respond until like three hours after the panel was over?” Jon groaned in embarrassment, but it was drowned out by giggles from everyone else.  
  
“Yeah, I remember. I would’ve killed to try and see you break the wood with your head.”   
  
“Only took ...” Josh paused and ticked off fingers. “... four tries. Not too bad.”   
  
“Oh, that explains so much,” Reese joked. “You got a hard head, am I right?”  
  
“Reese. Reese, stop. Oh god.”  
  
Jon snickered to himself; it went ignored compared to the uproar from the other Let’s Players. Emile looked confused when he got back to the table, but went along with it and simply jumped back into the conversation. Jon kept quiet and simply observed the rest of the con through the window nearby.   
  
People had adjusted quickly to the added security at the con. Most of those dressed up started posing for pictures, whereas others just struck up conversations with one another. Yet more stood in numerous lines, just to try the games. Was it a case of denial, or were they convinced they were there for their safety? Jon’s eyes glazed over, but he could feel concern wash over him.  
  
Any one of them could be attacked at any moment by whatever “outlaw” got in.  
  
“... Yo. Jon. Earth to Jon.” Emile snapped his fingers, and Jon jumped in his seat. “Jeez, you all right? You’ve been acting weird.”  
  
Jon opened his mouth, closed it, then shook his head. “Yeah, I’m fine. Still a little pissed about earlier.” Relief swept through him as his dear friends muttered in sympathy. “Sorry, guys. I may just need to wander around for a while.”  
  
Emile stood at the same time Jon did, then clapped his shoulder. “Go do that. Stay in touch, all right?”  
  
Jon nodded, and strode out of the coffee shop. He was sure to turn up the volume on his phone as he did so.

* * *

Jon definitely needed the time alone, but he didn’t like what his brain came up with. Especially not with people being pulled aside randomly for questioning. He did his best to stay out of sight and out of mind. He didn’t want to lose his temper at another guard. That would definitely lead to an arrest. 

Browsing the con didn’t prove to be boring, however. There was plenty to do; from the dealer’s room to the demos and the gaming room, there was something for every kind of congoer. He constantly referred to the schedule, and even managed to catch a couple of panels in the meantime. Nevertheless, a nagging fear never left the back of his mind.

Just as he left Games As An Art Form, he heard his phone buzz. Jon dug out his phone, and paled upon seeing the message from Reese.

_‘Okay, have you seen Jake? We’ve been trying to reach him, but he hasn’t answered calls or texts. He’s still not in the room, either.’_

Jon cautiously looked at the guards and took a place near the corner as he replied.

 _‘I haven’t seen him around at all. Did he get anything to eat? Maybe he’s in a shop or something.’_ Each second waiting for a reply felt like a year. He could feel his palms sweat and his breaths quicken. Just as he started typing another message, Reese replied.  
  
 _‘No, he isn’t. We checked all of those too.’_  
  
His typing grew more frantic.  
  
 _‘Where are you now?’_

_‘We’re at the elevators near the corner. Left side. Near Megaman.’_

_‘I’ll be right there.’_ Jon stuffed his phone back in his pocket and made a break to the elevators. His fast walk broke into a sprint, and he weaved through the crowds to get to the corner elevators.  
  
Where the hell was Jake?  
  
The look on Reese’s face made his heart break. She fidgeted and paced nervously near the elevator. Tim tried in vain to comfort her, but Josh's stone cold silence did nothing to ease the tension.  
  
“Where’s Emile?” Jon asked. The worst instantly came to mind. The mere thought of Emile being kidnapped made his anxiety go through the roof. That couldn’t happen to any more of his friends. Period.  
  
“He’s off to talk to the guards and report Jake as missing.” Jon exhaled in relief and simply hugged Tim tightly. “... You’re shaking, dude.”  
  
“Yeah, just don’t think I could deal with someone else missing.”   
  
Today was not going to be a good day.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELL THAT FAILED. Sorry to take this down and put it back up, but I noticed a lot of tiny little errors and wanted to fix those. So here's take two; please let me know if I missed anything! [[EDIT #3: I KEEP FINDING LITTLE THINGS UGH]]


	3. Interrogation

The rest of the early evening consisted of nothing but being questioned. Jon mostly remained quiet as Reese repeatedly outlined the details of Jake’s arrival, departure, and the last time she had seen him. All he could contribute was a meager amount of information; the one time Jon met the man, they were in the lobby.   
  
“Look, I really don’t know what else to tell you, uh ...” Jon’s voice trailed off and he glanced at the ID badge on the officer’s uniform. “... Amanda. I’m sorry.” Jon’s voice cracked; shame filled his gut as he buried his face in his hands. Emile gently gripped Jon’s shoulder to reassure him. “Reese has seen him, we haven’t, and ...”   
  
He trailed off mid-sentence and allowed Emile to talk instead.  
  
The atmosphere of the enclosed room did little to ease his nerves. The room was just large enough to hold a table in the center, and a few people on each side. It was clearly meant for smaller meetings, but the minimal decorations made him feel as if an interrogation was taking place.  
  
He couldn’t even bear to look at the woman sitting across from them. She had been nothing but understanding and patient, but the fact that she was there meant that something was wrong in the first place. Nevertheless, Jon forced himself to look up at her after a few long seconds. He had to appear strong; it’d be easier on everyone that way.  
  
Her black hair barely reached her shoulder and was tied up in a small ponytail. She had dark brown skin, with a tattoo on her left upper arm. The design was unclear under the uniform. Her brown eyes showed nothing but compassion and concern.  
  
“I know this is hard,” Amanda began. She took a sip of water and then set down the glass. “I am so sorry you’re having to go through this. You came here to enjoy yourselves, and this happened instead.” She leaned forward and placed her elbows on the table. “We’ll do all we can to find him. I’m going to get the owner of the hotel in here, and he’ll try to figure out how to make things easier on you.”  
  
“Is he going to ask the same things again?” Reese asked. She wiped the tears from her eyes. “Seriously, we’ve said the same things over and over ... We’re sorry we couldn’t get Josh, but he’s looking around in the hotel. This is all we’ve got.”  
  
“He may just ask for some other people who know Jake, aside from Josh.” The woman across from them rose from her seat. “That way, we can try to find more people who might have seen him. He’ll be here in a moment.” She grasped Reese’s shoulder as she passed by and left them alone.   
  
“I can’t believe this is happening, man.” Tim slouched over and stared at the tiled floor. “This is unbelievable.”  
  
“Yeah,” Emile chimed in. The downcast tone put a heavier weight on all of them. The tension in the air only grew until he broke the uncomfortable silence. “... I really hope he’s okay.”  
  
“Y-Yeah.” Jon took a deep breath in an attempt to steady his breathing. “At least all of those guards are gonna be good for something. Right?”  
  
Before anyone could answer, the door slammed open. The group jumped in their seats as a stranger stormed by them, and took his place across from them.  
  
Jon felt himself shrink; the man was just slightly taller than he was, and his green-eyed gaze cut right through him. The professional attire of a jet black tuxedo did little to ease him whatsoever. His black hair was slicked back, and some strands of gray had begun to form. Slight stubble was on his face. His pale skin made him look gaunt. The most noticeable feature, however, were the two scars that ran down from his forehead to his chin. _This dude’s seen some shit. How did he come to run a place like this?_  
  
“All right,” he began. “First, let me tell you -- we currently have a squad of officers tearing this hotel inside out looking for your friend.” A sigh of relief echoed in the room. “... However, we cannot dedicate all of our efforts to finding him. Some others have gone missing, too.”  
  
“W-what?!” Jon jerked his head up. “You’re shitting me!”  
  
“It’s unfortunate, and we’re doing all we can to track everyone down. But, I have to ask.” He straightened up and crossed his arms. The room remained deathly quiet. “Do you know anyone else who knows Jake? The more people we’re able to question, the more likely we’re able to find him, or at least get a clue of who took him away.”  
  
Reese, Emile, Tim, and Josh began to rattle off the names of those who were close to Jake. Jon didn’t say anything; he simply stared right back at the stranger in front of them. Those green eyes bore into each and every one of the Let’s Players. It almost seemed as if he was trying to catch them in a lie.  
  
The small smile on the man’s face did not escape Jon’s notice.  
  
Finally, their eyes met. Jon didn’t let himself shrink back this time, and kept his gaze level. “... And you, sir?”  
  
“They pretty much named everyone,” he replied evenly. “Those would be the people to start with if you need some more help.”  
  
“Thank you for your cooperation.” The stranger rose to his feet and adjusted the tuxedo jacket. “If you need anything, ask for me -- they know me by Chase -- and any meals in the restaurants are on me. I know it doesn’t make up for everything, but I need to do something. I just wish I could make him come back safe myself.”  
  
“Thanks.” The sincerity in Emile’s voice made Jon beam. Chase, on the other hand, seemed shocked. He regarded Emile oddly for a moment, but then offered a tight-lipped grimace and shook his hand.   
  
“We’ll try and help where we can too.”  
  
The group filed out of the small room. While there surely was a glimmer of hope, it didn’t make Jon feel any better.

* * *

He tried to be excited as he set up for Thrown Controllers later that night. The wires were tangled, the controllers were being finicky -- nothing new. Jon kept his back to the anxious crowd. The grim look on his face earned a few glances from Tim.   
  
He said nothing and simply kept at his work. There was going to be at least one thing that went right this weekend. If it was just Thrown Controllers, then so be it. He’d take what he could get. At the very least, it was easy to lose himself into his work. For a few seconds, he even managed to put his missing friend on the backburner. He couldn’t break down in front of the audience, after all.  
  
“All right, we good to go?” Jon asked. He let go of the wires and took one step back to double-check his handiwork.  
  
“Wait, no, there’s a wire that got loose.” Tim called out. Emile rushed to the other side of the stage.  
  
“Already got it.”  
  
“Let’s get things started!”  
  
Thrown Controllers started flawlessly. The technology worked as it was supposed to, the sound was just right, and Emile wasn’t too loud on the ears for once. Jon felt himself loosen up. The fact that the crowd was responsive and excitable definitely helped; he even cracked a smile.  
  
It only took a few minutes to properly explain how the panel would work. Jon took a moment to glance at the merchandise under the table, and gestured to Emile to continue the introduction as he rearranged the prizes.  
  
“... And so, choosing your fate tonight is JoshJepson, who has been hiding in the crowd! Come on, Josh, please do stand up!” The con-goers roared with excitement and began to crane their necks to find the guest hidden among them. Josh didn’t approach the stage, nor did he stand up.  
  
He wasn’t in the room at all. Convention staff gestured among themselves and began a thorough sweep of the ballroom.  
  
“... Okay, Josh, you can stop messing around. Come on out, dude.” Jon’s voice wavered. The microphone picked up each and every pitch change, which didn’t help the crowd at all.  
  
Panic set in. Reese stumbled out of the crowd and to the door and desperately called out Josh’s name.  
  
“Where the hell are you? Get your sorry ass out here, or I swear to God--!”  
  
Jon covered his ears and placed his head onto the table. This was one of those few times where he really wished that his hearing wasn’t as good as it was; he could hear numerous statements from the worried fans, and he began to shake.   
  
“... Close the panel. Just shut it down. I can’t do this, not with _two_ of my friends missing.” Jon looked up at Emile, who had already begun to pack the laptops and the consoles. He looked on in silence and then joined him.   
  
“Call Chase when we finish up here.”   
  
Fear knotted in Jon’s gut. What was going on, and why were people disappearing? Was the criminal just fucking around with them? He wasn’t sure, but his fear had begun to turn into sheer fury.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the shorter chapter, everyone. Tried to extend it, but really, it just would not have worked. I'll try to not let it happen again in the future.


End file.
